Key West, USA – so close and so far from Cuba
Key West in the closest point to Cuba from America. The archipelago of small islands Key West is part of the Florida Peninsula. If you depart from the “capital” of the Cuban diaspora – Miami you will drive along a beautiful highway into the sea like the one from Cayo Santa Maria and reach the southernmost point of the US. Since this is a blog about Cuba we will rather talk about what connects this place to Cuba.
Key West is located only 90 miles or 144 km from Cuba. Here are situated the most expensive real estate in America and the reason for this is the unique climate conditions and the neverending summer.
Key West is the closest land in America to Cuba so the island of Key West is often the destination of for those Cubans who want to get away. Many died drawning in the strong currents of the Mexican Gulf, the shark attacks, or exhaustion. The place is also known as the Promised Land for the Cuban “balseros” – Cuban immigrants who pass the Florida channel illegally on self-made boats. According to the USA Coastline Security statistics, the highest number of balseros was in 1994 when 64 382 Cubans passed the channel successfully. In 2014 only 2111 Cuban are accepted in America and in 2015 – 2927.
If the Cuban reach the shore they are met by the immigration service, and since they are Cubans they are accepted into America as political immigrants. This is the so-called “wet feet, dry feet policy”, which was abolished by US president Obama in 2017. The law policy was accepted by the US Senat as a part of the struggle with Cuba. According to the policy if Cuban immigrants reach the shores of the USA they are accepted on the basis of a business visa and thereafter citizenship. This led to many deaths and very risky situations.
Credits to Nikolay Ninov for some of the photographs.
